Two bishops, or a bishop and another piece, can work together to cut off the king’s escape squares, protect the mating piece and deliver mate. The long-range impact of the bishop is often the key to these patterns.

This position arose in one of my recent games. White is better here to the tune of about +6, partly because of the knight on the great c6-outpost, the pressure on the backward c-pawn and the superior dark squared bishop.…

Focussing on patterns in chess is a good idea. Depending on who you listen to, the number of patterns a chess player knows could be the difference between being mediocre and good, or between being a master and a grandmaster.…

When Amy Lee moved to our school and walked into class for the first time, my legs turned to jelly in seconds. I immediately knew I had to ask her out. Over the next few days I scripted and practiced …